Should Programming Bootcamps Be Regulated?

As the IT industry changes, so it the way IT is taught. It’s no longer essential to have a four year university degree and a postgraduate qualification to attain employment; you can train in a much shorter time period and still come out employable. Bootcamps are widely available now, teaching you the skills you need in shorter, intense courses. This begs the question – should programming bootcamps be regulated?

There are arguments for and against the regulation of programming bootcamps. To use an old cliché, when it’s not broken don’t fix it. Dev Bootcamp is one such place. Based in San Francisco, New York and Chicago, these bootcamps have been operating unregulated since 2012. You can’t argue with the statistics – about 450 alumni have passed through Dev Bootcamp’s doors in the past two years; 85% of whom are employed now. Compare this with the average American university; where about 27% of graduates are employed in a field related to their study.

It really comes down to the individual – bootcamp-style training in coding suits some, whereas some prefer the college setting. The biggest advantages bootcamps have, though, is churning out graduates every few months that are ready to take on a junior programming role. IT is obviously an industry that is rapidly changing and these bootcamps also gives IT workers the chance to upskill in a fraction of the time that a degree would take.

The Dev Bootcamp example in America is an interesting one, as the government cracked down on bootcamps that were not registered. Fines were enforced and institutions were asked to comply with regulations for future training. While regulation is not a bad thing, the bootcamps were functioning at a better level than colleges up until this, which poses the question; should programming bootcamps be regulated?

In short, there is no simple answer, but it’s an interesting debate to follow. If a coding bootcamp sounds appealing, check out our next open evening.